ABSTRACT

Although known in principle since the 1900s, i.e., shortly after the discovery of x-rays and radioactivity, food irradiation by x-and gamma-rays and by electron beam has been introduced only recently, as a new technological process, mainly to reduce spoilage losses and to improve hygienic quality (1-6). Many investigations have been devoted to possible health hazards and, in 1980, a Joint Food and Agriculture (FAO)/ International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)/World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Committee meeting (5) concluded that ‘‘the irradiation of any food commodity up to an overall average dose of 10 kGy presents no toxicological hazard; hence, toxicological testing of foods so treated is no longer required.’’ More recently, a new WHO/FAO/IAEA study group also recognized that there is no toxicological hazard even for doses higher than 10 kGy (7).